APC by Schneider Electric AR3187B2 NetShelter SX Gen 2 48U Server Rack Enclosure
Overview
The AR3187B2 is APC's NetShelter SX Generation 2 server rack enclosure in a 48U configuration, finished in black and sized at 2258mm tall × 800mm wide × 1070mm deep. It's built for data center rows, server rooms, and network equipment deployments where you need a standardized 19-inch mounting environment that accommodates full-depth servers, storage arrays, patch panels, and power distribution units in a single physical footprint. This is a floor-standing enclosure — not rack-mountable — which means it ships as a standalone cabinet destined for raised-floor data halls, colocation cages, or dedicated IT rooms rather than stacked or integrated into a chassis bay. If you're sourcing from the APC by Schneider Electric catalog, the AR3187B2 sits at the top of the NetShelter SX line in terms of height, giving you maximum vertical density before you need to consider a two-cabinet split.
Key Features
- 48U Rack Space: 48 rack units of usable vertical space lets you stack a fully loaded server, storage, and networking tier without splitting across cabinets. For a three-tier compute deployment — top-of-rack switching, mid-rack servers, bottom storage — 48U means everything stays in one enclosure, which simplifies cabling, airflow management, and physical security.
- 2258mm Total Height: At 2258mm, this cabinet is designed for standard 2400mm raised-floor grid data halls. The extra overhead above 48U accommodates cable entry, blanking panels, and top-mounted power or cooling accessories without encroaching on usable rack space. Verify your ceiling clearance before specifying — this is not a low-profile enclosure.
- 800mm Cabinet Width: The 800mm-wide footprint accommodates wide-body servers (Dell PowerEdge, HPE ProLiant, Lenovo ThinkSystem) with side-to-side cable management and integrated blanking without forcing a custom workaround. Standard 19-inch rail mounting positions remain consistent regardless of the 800mm outer shell.
- 1070mm Usable Depth: 1070mm internal depth clears modern full-depth 1U and 2U servers as well as high-density storage enclosures, which often push 900–1000mm including cable relief. You won't be removing doors to fit gear — that's a real-world installation differentiator on deep blade chassis or AFF storage arrays.
- 180.74 kg Cabinet Weight: The enclosure itself weighs 180.74 kg unloaded. Factor this into floor load calculations before specifying — a fully populated 48U rack with servers and PDUs can exceed 800 kg total. Raised-floor tiles and structural supports must be rated accordingly. This is standard due-diligence for any high-density data center row, not a limitation unique to this model.
- Black Finish: Black powder coat is the standard for colocation and enterprise data center environments where visual consistency across rows matters. If you're integrating into a mixed-brand row, the AR3187B2's black finish matches the de facto floor standard without custom paint or overlay panels.
- Floor-Standing, Non-Rack-Mountable Design: The AR3187B2 is a standalone floor cabinet — it is not designed to nest inside another rack or wall-mount. This matters for facilities planning: it needs a dedicated floor tile or pad, proper seismic anchoring in applicable zones, and aisle alignment for hot/cold containment.
Integration and Compatibility
The AR3187B2 uses standard 19-inch EIA-310 rail mounting, which is compatible with virtually all enterprise server, storage, and networking equipment. As part of the NetShelter SX Gen 2 line, it is designed to integrate with server rack and enclosure accessories including APC's own blanking panels, cable management arms, horizontal cable managers, and power distribution units. For data centers running hot/cold aisle containment, this cabinet's dimensions are engineered to align with standard 600mm and 1200mm floor tile grids — the 800mm width is the key dimension to cross-reference against your containment system's bay specifications. If you're pairing this with rack PDUs or in-row cooling, verify the depth compatibility of those units against the 1070mm internal clearance. For larger deployments requiring a complete data center infrastructure build-out, the AR3187B2 pairs naturally with APC's InRow cooling and Symmetra UPS product lines, though compatibility with specific accessories should be confirmed against APC's current NetShelter SX accessory matrix.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the internal usable depth of the AR3187B2?
A: The AR3187B2 has an overall depth of 1070mm. This accommodates full-depth enterprise servers and storage enclosures. Confirm the exact rail-to-rail usable depth against your specific equipment's maximum depth specification before ordering.
Q: How many rack units does the AR3187B2 provide?
A: The AR3187B2 provides 48U of usable rack space on standard 19-inch EIA-310 rails.
Q: What does the AR3187B2 weigh, and what are the floor load implications?
A: The empty enclosure weighs 180.74 kg. When fully populated with servers, storage, and power distribution, total rack weight can significantly exceed this figure. Floor load ratings for raised tiles and structural supports must be verified against your total populated weight estimate.
Q: Is the AR3187B2 rack-mountable inside another enclosure?
A: No. The AR3187B2 is a floor-standing cabinet and is not designed to be rack-mounted inside another enclosure. It requires dedicated floor space with appropriate clearances for door swing, cable access, and aisle containment alignment.
Q: What is the overall height of the AR3187B2?
A: The AR3187B2 stands 2258mm tall. This is a full-height data center cabinet designed for facilities with standard raised-floor grid ceiling clearances. Verify ceiling height and overhead obstructions before installation.
Q: What color is the AR3187B2?
A: The AR3187B2 ships in black, which is the standard finish for enterprise and colocation data center environments.
The AR3187B2 is the cabinet I specify when a client needs maximum vertical density in a single footprint — 48U at 2258mm tall means you're running a full three-tier stack (top-of-rack switching, compute, storage) without splitting across two enclosures and dealing with inter-cabinet cabling overhead. The 1070mm depth is the number I tell engineers to double-check against their deepest piece of gear before the purchase order goes through.
Technical Highlights:
- 48U Capacity: Full three-tier compute deployments fit in one enclosure — eliminates the cross-cabinet cabling complexity and PDU splits that come with two shorter racks.
- 800mm Width: Wide-body enterprise servers mount without clearance compromises; also aligns with standard hot/cold aisle containment bay widths in most modern data hall designs.
- 180.74 kg Unloaded Weight: At 180.74 kg empty, floor load planning is non-negotiable before deployment — a fully populated rack can push well past 600–800 kg depending on server density and PDU configuration.
Deployment Considerations:
- The 2258mm height requires ceiling clearance verification before install — factor in overhead cable trays and top-entry power whips, which can add another 150–300mm of required overhead depending on your cable management approach.
- This is a floor-standing, non-rack-mountable enclosure: it needs seismic anchoring in applicable zones and proper raised-floor tile reinforcement rated for the populated weight. Don't assume standard tiles are adequate without a structural check.
The AR3187B2 is the right call for a colocation cage build or enterprise server room where you're standardizing on full-height 48U cabinets and need 1070mm depth clearance for modern storage and compute — specifically when your gear roster includes deep 2U servers or AFF/NVMe storage arrays that push the limits of shorter, shallower cabinets.
